Welcome to this week’s Major League Wrestling review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have an odd one to get to, so let’s do so before I go cock-eyed.

Match #1: Dragon Lee defeated Rich Swann

The following is courtesy of MLW.com:

An aggressive Rich Swann took on Dragon Lee in an important middleweight bout to open the show. The two were obviously an even match in the early going. The two apparently even think alike, throwing dropkicks and then flipping to kip up at the same time. Neither man could keep the upper hand long. Lee hit an amazing reverse rana, but Swann hopped up and landed a massive spin kick Swann eventually grabbed the momentum and thought he had the match in hand. He went to the top rope for his spinning 450 he calls the Phoenix Splash. But Dragon Lee was nowhere to be found. As Swann tried to recover from missing the high-risk maneuver, Lee scooped him up and scored the pinfall with a Dragon Driver.

My Take: 3 out of 5 – This match was all about Swann and his incredible abilities, despite Lee being the winner. Swann is out of his mind when it comes to these aerial maneuvers and it’s a bit off-putting to think that more wrestlers will idolize him and his risks than Bret Hart and his technique, at least with the next generation of wrestlers. I liked this, but I wish that it had been a more even match.

The following is courtesy of MLW.com:

Brian Pillman Jr. had some odd ring attire for his Singapore Cane match with Tommy Dreamer. Pillman came to the ring with a coat of some sort over what looked to be a sweater. It was later determined this was strategy, as Pillman had two more layers on below those. He was trying to counteract the pain and damage of the sure-to-land blows by Tommy Dreamer with the Singapore Cane. It didn’t take Dreamer long to foil Pillman’s plan and stripped him down to the bare skin. Dreamer got a few shots on Pillman with the cane. But Pillman is wily beyond his years. The MLW Rookie of the Year found the one of the canes laying between Dreamer’s legs. Without hesitation, Pillman crotched Dreamer with the cane, then set him up for Dire Promise, the cross-armed swinging neckbreaker. Between Pillman’s favorite finishing maneuver and the pain from the crotch shot, Dreamer could not kick out and Pillman took out another legend.

My Take: 2.5 out of 5 – This was a quirky brawl that had some of that Norman Smiley appeal. Pillman was booked as a smart guy, which is happening less often in wrestling. The idea that Pillman beat Dreamer by formulating a plan at the last second is something they could use for him later on, especially if the goal is to link him to his father even more than he is now.

The following is courtesy of MLW.com:

Team Filthy’s Fred Yehi challenged Low Ki to a championship match last week and the match was quickly put together. Yehi had some solid early offense, scoring with a big low dropkick after doing damage to Low Ki’s foot. But the champion is too good at attacking openings, even small ones. As Yehi tried to pull Low Ki down off the turnbuckle, Low Ki saw that opening. A huge overhead strike put Yehi down on his knees in the corner. Low Ki, who was already atop the turnbuckle, quickly came down on Yehi’s back with a double stomp to pick up the pinfall.

My Take: 3 out of 5 – This was way too short for some-thing this good. Actually, it’s enough to piss you off that this match went so quickly, when the middle match had less quality and went longer. Ki and Yehi were a great pairing that have a lot of potential and the fact that it will not stand the test of time due to just that is pretty pitiful. That being said, this was good while it lasted.

News Of The Night:

Sami Callihan was goaded by Salina de la Renta to attack Tom Lawlor in a huge waste of time. This angle took up half of the show and ruined the potential of the main event. If you ever wonder why MLW can’t make it past a certain point, it’s because of decisions like this.

Final Verdict: 3/5

The wrestling saved a night that made Sami Callihan look like an idiot and ruined the length of what could have been a great main event.